Spring Slim Down

With Spring in full swing, sun shining, birds chirping and bathing suit season trailing close behind, you may be feeling pressure to drop some of that winter weight. Crash dieting, fad diets, weight loss shakes, mystery meals and liquid detoxes are some quick fixes tempting to try. It is important to understand this, most of the weight you lose in the first 2 weeks with these “quick tricks” is simply water weight. Unfortunately, the weight does not stay off, it comes back more stubborn than before, and even worse, you are putting your health at risk. With so many new and seductive weight loss fads on the rise, it can be easy to get pulled in. Consider this to be your “look before you leap” advice of the day.

Health and wellness is currently a billion dollar industry with a huge chunk of that focused strictly on weight loss. While there are some truly amazing health and wellness companies, products and books, there are also many of quite the opposite. There are so many different schemes and scams when it comes to weight loss. Magic pills. Super shakes. Diet detoxes. One particular fad diet known as the “grapefruit diet”, can be devastating on your blood sugar levels causing headaches, fatigue, dizziness, gastrointestinal disturbances and more. The “grapefruit diet” can be fatal for people who are on certain medications for cholesterol, blood pressure and emotional/anxiety disorders. For more information on the dangers of the “grapefruit diet” you can go to www.livestrong.com or even consult with your doctor. Amazing how one healthy fruit eaten excessively can cause such an array of turmoil. This is just one example of a fad diet that can go wrong.

How about those super shakes? Advertisements and salesmen really make those weight loss shakes sound delicious and incredible! Chocolate cream pie shake. Strawberry shortcake shake. Apple crumble shake. Yum! Unfortunately, many times these “healthy Shakes” are filled with toxic ingredients. Artificial sweeteners, flavors and colors, man-made chemical ingredients, a mixture of different herbs, sugars, high fructose corn syrup and usually a variety of ingredients you can not pronounce. A chemical shit storm wreaking havoc on your body! Now I am not saying that all Shakes and Smoothies are bad. Keep in mind that any shake you choose to add to your daily nutrition regimen should have limited ingredients and no artificial anything. Plant based protein shakes such as Plant Fusion (made in the USA) and Arbonne (made in the USA) are a great, healthy addition to your day. Whey Protein shakes that have limited ingredients such as Nutra-Bio (also made in the USA) are also a great addition.

If you want to take some weight off and keep it off, the best way to do that is proper diet and exercise. Once you begin a healthy lifestyle, the weight will come off and becomes easier to keep off. Here are a few tips for making the switch to healthier living:

1- Ditch the Drinks. Eliminate Soda/Sugar drinks and switch to water or seltzers.

3- Swap your Snacks. It is easy to get caught up in a great movie and down an entire bag of cool ranch Doritos. Be mindful of your snacking. Swap out chips for air-popped pop corn. Grab fresh fruits and veggies to snack on dipped in hummus, salsa, guacamole all in moderation.

4- Make time to Move! Go for a 30 minute walk, hit the gym, take a yoga class. Any movement is better than no movement at all.

It is always advised to speak to your Doctor before starting a new nutrition or exercise plan. For more information on healthy shakes, healthy living or how you can get started on the road to a healthy lifestyle in a safe way, contact us at: